Why Don't You Do Right?
by LunarLotus123
Summary: Clarice McCoy is the younger sister of Dr. Bones and the newest member of the U.S.S. Enterprise's crew, Rated M for future chapters. Sex/Mature content **This is a story a fan/friend asked me to write, I hope you enjoy it
1. Chapter 1

This is a fanfiction I am doing at the request of a good friend of mine. This is her OC and everything, I'm just putting it on paper for her.

* * *

_Starfleet Academy. A place of learning and inspiration._

_From this academy, great people such as James T. Kirk and Spock, graduated and became some of the most well known Starfleet officers ever._

_It's been about four years since their run in with Nero and the Romulan mining vessel Narada and Kirk still commands the U.S.S. Enterprise._

_My name is Clarice McCoy, and today, I graduate from the academy and join my older brother, Leonard McCoy as part of the Enterprise's crew as a medical officer._

_Though not my first choice, I'd rather be in the medical bay than stuck here on Earth while my brother gallivants across the galaxy without me._

_I'd better wrap this up, I'll be late for orientation, Clarice McCoy signing off._

After wrapping up the journal entry, a young woman with dark brown wavy hair that hung down to her shoulders and dark hazel eyes stood up and straightened out her uniform shirt.

Unlike most women that joined Starfleet, Clarice refused to wear the standard female uniform. After much argument and headache, Admiral Pike caved and allowed her to wear the male uniform.

"Alright girl...you can do this," she muttered looking in the mirror and pulling her hair back into a bun.

At the shuttle docks, a small group of engineers and such were gathered around the shuttle prepping to return to the Enterprise.

Dr. McCoy was there, conducting medical checks as they boarded.

Clarice ran over and got at the back of the line, her small duffel bag hanging over her shoulder rifle style.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too big brother," Clarice said tilting her head a bit, a cocky smile adorned her lips.

Leonard groaned as he ran his tricorder through the usual exam, "What happened to medical school?"

"Too boring, besides, I did promise mom and dad I'd keep an eye on you," she said sarcastically, "Also, dad says he's missing the pictures he asked you for."

After getting his readings, McCoy looked at her, a very irate look in his eyes, "I told you three years ago I didn't want you joining Starfleet, it's a deathwish disguised as honor. What am I going to tell-"

"What? Tell mom and dad? They already know and even offered to pay my tuition. Just admit it, YOU'RE scared," Clarice snapped heading for the shuttle doors only to be stopped midstep by McCoy grabbing her arm and pulling her back.

"Yes I am. But not of losing you. I'm scared that something will happen that I can't fix."

Clarice took his hand from her arm and sighed, "I'm 25 years old Leonard, I can take care of myself."

Before he could stop her, McCoy watched as she got into the shuttle, "Why does she have to be so god damned stubborn..."

Inside the shuttle, Clarice had already put her bag under her seat and buckled in when Leonard took the seat beside her.

"So, still hate flying?" she asked smirking a bit.

"Will you shut up for five minutes?" McCoy muttered as he buckled in, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut.

The shuttle began vibrating as the engines roared to life, a slight amount of turbulence kicked in as it lifted from the ground and began its ascent.

After arriving on board the ship, Clarice held her hand out to her brother, "Four years Leonard, you think you'd be used to this."

McCoy glared up at his little sister, but grabbed her hand anyway as he stood up, letting go as soon as he was stable, "What part of shut up didn't you catch?"

Stepping of the shuttle, Clarice couldn't help but stare in wonder at the sheer beauty and structure of the Enterprise.

"New recruits!"  
The voice of none other than James Kirk himself rang out though the shuttle over the murmurs of the nervous new crew.

Clarice turned quickly with the others and stood at attention as Kirk walked over followed by his first officer Spock.

"Listen up, I expect the best from you. You were chosen for my crew because you exceeded Starfleet expectations...or had a few marks on your records that made you stand out," Kirk said walking up and down the line of men and women, "To most Starfleet officers, those would guarantee you would never leave the academy. To me though, it is a mark of ingenuity, it shows me you think outside of the normal parameters and that you have what it takes to be part of this crew. I will tell you now though, if you feel that you cannot meet what you feel my expectations are, you have my permission to return to Earth. Any takers?"

After a moment of thought, the group replied with a simultaneous, "No sir!"

Kirk looked at Spock, then at the new crew, "Well then, welcome aboard the Enterprise."

Clarice smirked a bit before she started after the other crew members.

"McCoy!"

Both of the McCoy siblings turned to Kirk, "Yes?"

Kirk walked over and held her hand out to Clarice, "Welcome aboard. Bones is one of my best doctors, I'm glad to have you on our medical staff as well."

Leonard walked over as well, waiting to see if he needed to run interference.

"Thank you sir. Also," Clarice said, shaking his hand, "I've heard of your reputation at the Academy and I can guarantee you...I am NOT a cheap date."

That comment seemed to catch both Bones and Kirk off guard, but Kirk just laughed a bit, "I'll keep that in mind. Besides..."

A quick glance at McCoy revealed what he was truly worried about, "Since Bones does the physicals...I'm not sure if I want to take that road."

"Smart move Jim," Bones replied raising an eyebrow at him.

"I do have a question though sir," Clarice asked, walking alongside Kirk as they left the shuttle bay, "My courses and aptitude were aimed towards engineering and weapons specialist...why the med bay sir?"

"I can't really explain it. Just trust me when I say I have my reasons."

"Yes sir. I'll take your word for it."

"Clarice, I'll take you to the medical bay so the captain can return to his duties," Spock said, finally breaking his silence.

"Thank you sir, I'd hate to get lost on my first day," the dark haired woman said with a polite smile.

The Vulcan nodded and motioned for the new girl to follow him, "I am surprised with your choice of uniform, McCoy."

"I got that alot sir, I felt the traditional female uniform was impractical though. After many 'discussions' with Admiral Pike, he allowed me to wear the male uniform sir," Clarice explained as they walked, "I do have to say sir, I read up on the incident that ended with Kirk commanding the Enterprise, I was extremely excited to be joining your crew."

"Yes...it seems that is our better known endeavor," Spock explained as they came upon the medical bay, the white doors sliding open.

"I do have a question that the captain failed to answer," Clarice said as they entered the medical bay, "Why put me here? I could be of use in weapons or engineering sir."

"The captain didn't wish to tell you but Dr. McCoy requested you be assigned here. His reasons are unknown but the captain owed him a favor and was therefore required to grant his request," Spock explained, "Here is your medical equipment, medication is kept-"

"Leonard requested it?" Clarice said sound a bit hurt.

"He did. Anyhow, there are charts explaining everything you need to do your job. If you need any assistance, be sure to inquire McCoy about it," Spock said before dismissing himself.

Once he was gone, Clarice began to poke around, examining the medical tools and medicine that had already been layed out.

After she got a good feel for everything, Clarice tried making her way to the bridge to get a look at the frontier that they were set to explore.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Unfortunately, she found herself in engineering where everyone was running around trying to get prepped for launch.

"Oi! I didn't call for a medic! What're you doing down here!?" a scottish voice called out in a very commanding tone.

"I'm so sorry, I was trying to find the bridge, I just arrived about an hour ago," Clarice explained as the main engineer made his way over.

"Let me guess, they showed you the med bay and that was it," the man said, his hair extremely short and blond.

"Yes sir," she replied smiling sheepishly.

"Well, welcome aboard, Montgomery Scott, call me Scotty. And drop the sir," Scotty explained shaking her hand, "It's too stuffy for me."

"Pleasure to meet you. Could you maybe direct me to the bridge?" Clarice asked, blushing ever so slightly.

"I'll take you there myself. Keenser! Quit messing around! I'll be back in a bit!" Scotty called out to his alien assistant that strangely resembled a rock.

Once he turned back to her, Clarice took his outstretched arm and started with him towards the bridge.

He led her to the lift and comanded the computer to the bridge, "It's much simpler this way, rather than trying to sort it out yourself."

"I'll keep that in mind for next time. Mrs. Scotty is a real lucky woman," Clarice commented, refering to his chivalry.

"Oh I'm not...I mean...There's no one at home waiting for me. You?" Scotty asked trying not to blush.

"Not really. There was this British gentleman about three weeks ago but he never called," she explained letting go of his arm and fixing her shirt a bit.

"You got stood up? The gall of that limey bastard..." Scotty commented, uttering the name with a special distaste.

Clarice laughed a bit, "It's alright. I'm used to it. Once men realize that I know my way around a warp drive as well as or better than they do, well, it's intimidating. I mean what woman is supposed to know about dilithium crystal or transmatter? The moment you try and tell them they're using the wrong power output in the warp nacelles they act like you belong in a nut house."

Scotty stood there and stared in shock as she rambled off the engine specs and such, completely in shock at her knowledge, "That's incredible..."

"Sorry...I have a bad habit of going on..." she said realizing how long she had been going on, "Didn't mean to bore you."

"Oh no, it's quite alright. I actually enjoy talking schematics with a woman," the Scot said with a goofy smile.

"That's a first..." she repluied before the lift signalled they had reached the bridge.

The doors opened and Scotty escorted the young woman to the side where she could watch everything.

Kirk glanced over but just gave a nod before looking to Sulu, "Mr. Sulu, take us out."

The japanese man nodded and adjusted the controls, "Aye sir."

After a few more commands, the Enterpirs began pulling out of the docks it had been attatched to and turned towards teh boundless void of space.

Seeing the blackness dotted with billions of stars, almost like a sheet of black velvet with flecks of glitter just thrown across with no care in the world.

"Where to Captain?" Chekov asked turning to Kirk.

The captain paused before resting his hand on his leg, "Nibiru, Chekov. Warp one."

"Yes captain," he replied, his russian accent thick with each word that left his lips.

"So, what do ya think?" Scotty asked, glancing at teh bewildered medical technician.

"It's incredible. I never imagined it to be so vast and beautiful," she said smiling in wonder.

Once the ship was in warp and on its way, Kirk walked over to Clarice with a smirk, "I take it this is your first time of planet?"

"Yes sir," she replied looking him in the eye, "On top of that, the warp drive is so quiet compared to the ones in class. Does the engine run on dilithium or stritcly matter/anti-matter?"

Kirk raised an eyebrow in surprise, unsure on how to answer, "You weren't kidding when you said you focussed on engineering at the Academy."

"Yes sir. I was hoping to be assigned to engineering until Leonard stepped in," she explained with a dry chuckle.

"Lemme guess...Spock told you."

"Yes sir."

After a bit, Kirk chuckled, "Tell you what, I'll personally put you in engineering as long as you help out in sick bay when you're needed."

Scotty smiled a bit as Clarice's face lit up, "Really sir? Thank you so much. I won't let you down sir."

"Mr. Scott, could you get Ms. McCoy here the proper uniform then?" Kirk asked smirking a bit as he returned to his captains chair.

"Right this way," Scotty said re-escorting her to the lift.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Once inside the lift, Scotty glanced at Clarice, wanting to ask her for a drink but unsure on whether it was too soon or not.

"If you're wondering, no I wouldn't mind a drink," the brunette said, glancing over with a chuckle.

"Oh, great...Sounds like a plan. Ummm..." Scotty muttered blushing ever so slightly, "Well, let's get you a uniform shirt."

As soon as he said that the doors opened and they were back in engineering.

He hurried over to the lockers and grabbed one of the shirts, bringing it over to Clarice, "This one should fit."

Clarice took it and smiled, "Alright, thanks Scotty. So, when and where?"

"Pardon?"

Clarice chuckled and shifted her weight from one leg to the other, "For drinks?"

"Oh! Right! Sorry...um...eight o'clock sound good? I'll come get you?" Scotty said blushing again.

"Alright, I'll see you then. Casual business attire?" she asked jokingly, gently motioning to the uniform in her arms.

Scotty nodded and smiled, "Right, see you then..."

Clarice chuckled and went back to the lift, all the time thinking about her date later that evening.

As the door closed, she grabbed the handle and sighed, "Residential."

The computer beeped in acknowledgement and the lift began to move.

To her surprise, it stopped at the medical deck and the doors opened to reveal Bones standing there looking rather unamused.

"Well, don't you look happy brother?" Clarice commented stepping aside to make room for him.

"Heard you got transferred. You haven't even put in any work yet," Bones said as the lift resumed.

"Well, what can I say? I'm just not meant for nursing," she replied with a bit of remorse in her voice.

"So? At least there y-"

"I'd be what? Safe? Secure? That's not why I joined Starfleet Leonard!"

"I know but I'll be damned if I let anything happen to you!"

After their shouting match, the lift falling silent.

The lift came to a halt and the door opened.

"Tell you what Leonard," Clarice snapped as she walked away, "Why don't you stick to your area and I'll stick to mine."

Bones grimaced and was about to snap at her when the door closed on him.

Once she found her room, Clarice walked in and flopped down on the bed.

"This has been one hell of a day," she muttered before switching into her engineer uniform.

After changing, Clarice took the badge from her other uniform and put it on over her heart, "Well, at least now I'll get a break from Leonard."

After making herself presentable once more, Clarice looked at the clock.

It was already 7:50.

"Guess I was lost worse than I thought earlier," she muttered after touching the computer screen and looking over the ships blueprints to keep from getting lost again.

Meanwhile, outside the door, Scotty stood there, trying to get the courage to knock on the door.

"Pull yourself together man...it's just drinks..." the Scotsman muttered finally knocking on the door.

Inside, Clarice heard the knock and jumped a little before going to answer it.

Once the door opened, Scotty smiled sheepishly at the young woman, "Oh, um...hi!"

"Hi," Clarice said chuckling a bit as she brushed some of her hair behind her ear.

Scotty smiled and let out a nervous laugh, "Still up for that drink?"

"Definitely. Lead the way," the brunette replied stepping out of her quarters, following Scotty as he started leading her towards the mess hall/bar.

"Looking good...the uniform I mean," he said quickly trying not to stare.

"Thanks," Clarice replied before turning her head to look at him, "Don't worry about acting suave or anything like that. I prefer it when guys are straight forward and be themselves."

Hearing this, Scotty chuckled awkwardly, "Me? Acting? No this is me...well off duty me...that is-"

After hearing Scotty start stumbling over his words again, Clarice stopped him by holding his shoulder, turned him to face her and planted a gentle yet commanding kiss on his rough lips.

Scotty stood there a moment, unsure of how to react when his body took over and returned the kiss.

"Wanna go back to my room?" she whispered into his ear, unable to control her animal instincts.

"Sounds good," he replied smiling big as they hurried back, mentally grateful that the corridor was empty.

Once back inside, Clarice locked the door and flung her arms around Scotty, their lips locked as they stumbled their way to the bed.

It didn't take long for their clothes to come off, Scotty's hand ran up from the small of her back around until he reached her right breast which he findled lovingly yet roughly.

Clarice didn't mind, his hands hand the roughness of an engineer which tickled her skin with every movement.

"I want you..." she managed to gasp as they broke the kiss.

"Me too," Scotty muttered before positioning his manhood between her legs and thrusting in.

The young woman let out a cry and arched her back as he penetrated her and began moving with her body.

Trying not to scream, Clarice gently bit down on Scotty's shoulder, he didn't seem to mind though. If anything, it excited him.

Thrust after thrust, the couple found themselves nearing their peak.

A final cry from Clarice, both her and Scotty climaxed and fell into the bed, holding one another as they gasped for air.

Out of curiosity, Scotty glanced at the clock, 9:30.

"Still want that drink?" he asked after he caught his breath.

"Let's just use the replicator..." she replied in between breaths, before getting out of bed and walking over to the computer against the wall.

Scotty stared at her pale naked form and smiled as he propped himself up on his elbow.

"Two scotch on the rocks," Clarice said to the computer.

There was a beep of confirmation before two glasses appeared in the empty hole in the wall.

Just as she turned to take the glasses over to the bed there was a knock at the door, "Clarice"

The voice caused her to jump and almost drop the glasses, "Shit...it's Leonard..."

At the mention of the elder McCoy being at the door, Scotty felt his chest tighten.

In a fit of panic, Clarice took Scotty and hid him behind the bed and grabbed a towel to cover herself.

After a moment, she slid the door open a bit, "Yes?"

"We need to talk," Bones said looking seriously at her through the three inch gap, "Is now an okay time?"

"Not really...I was just about to shower," she lied shifting her towel slightly.

"It'll just take a minute, are you at least decent?"

"Not really."

Ignoring her, Bones pushed the button to open the door completely and invited himself in, "Listen, about your transfer."

"Ok, I know it was unfair of me to transfer without talking to you, but honestly Kirk did it so suddenly that I didn't think twice," she explained, sitting on the bed and holding the towel tight to her body, "Now could you leave so I can get dressed?"

Bones raised an eyebrow at her, unsure of what to think, "I was going to say I'm okay with it. What's going on with you? You feeling alright?"

Seeing Scotty's boxers beneath the table Bones was standing by, she chuckled, "I'm fine, I'm just excited to be here. I've never been on a star ship before."

Bones slowly nodded and was about to leave when he saw two glasses on the table.

"Expecting company?"

Clarice felt her throat tighten and quickly walked over, "No, I just replicated two by accident. You know how adrenaline can affect the speech patterns. You are a doctor after all."

Bones smirked a bit, "Guess you won't mind if I have one then."

As he grabbed one, Clarice forced a smile, "Of course not."

While he took a sip, Bones' sister slipped behind the wall and quickly threw a bathrobe on and tied it shut, "So, you think med-bay will be alright with just you?"

"Okay," Bones said setting the glass down, "What's going on? You hate scotch."

"Scotch? I could've sworn I got whiskey," she said taking the glass and tasting the liquid.

"Who is it?"

"What are you talking about?"

Without blinking, Bones kicked the boxers out from under the table, "Who...is...it?"

Before she could come up with an excuse, Scotty stood up from behind the bed, holding the sheet to keep decent, "Hello doc."

Clarice felt her stomach tie itself into a knot, untie and retie itself as she looked from Scotty to Bones.

Bones dropped the glass, a look of shock and confusion on his face.

"I know what you're thinking Leonard but I am a grown woman now. Think before y-"

"Scott!? Of all the people on this ship...Even Spock would have been a better choice!"

"Oi! I'm right here ya know!"

Sighing, Clarice rubbed her brow before looking at McCoy, "Leonard...just take a second to breathe."

"BREATHE!? I can see why you transferred to engineering now!" Bones snapped before feeling a sharp pain on the right side of is face.

Clarice had heard enough when she took her right hand and slapped her brother across the face as hard as she could.

Scotty just stood there, sheet still covering his dignity.

Once the initial shock wore off, Clarice looked her brother in the eye with and anger that could have stopped a raging Klingon, "Listen here Leonard, I am not the little girl you had to protect anymore, I am a grown woman who can make decisions for herself. Now if you have anything to say I suggest you put it out of your mind before I beat it out of there!"

Bones stared in shock, she had never stood up to him before, he had always been the tough one.

"Now could you leave so we can get dressed and go back to our lives? Or do I have to kick you out as well," Clarice asked motioning towards the door.

McCoy just shook his head before storming off to the med-bay.

Once the door shut again, Clarice turned to Scotty and smiled, "Sorry about that. He's always been a bit overprotective. Let me get a couple more drinks."

"Oh I don't mind...I like women with attitude," he replied putting his boxers back on.

"Guess I should mouth off a little more often than...shouldn't I?" she asked handing him a fresh scotch, and kissing him gently on the neck.

"Oh aye," he said feeling a shiver run through his body.

After finishing off their drinks, Clarice looked at the time, "I'd say let's go again, but...we have to be in engineering in eight hours."

Scotty looked and let out a sigh, "Alright. Guess we should sleep soon. I'll get-"

"Did I say you were returning to your quarters?"

Just as Scotty had picked up his shirt, Clarice wrapped a hand around his chest, "Just because we need rest, doesn't mean you have to leave..."

A happy and lustful smile found its way to Scotty's lips as he followed her to the bed and layed down beside her, his arm resting over her waist as the drifted into sleep beside one another.

Just before falling asleep though, Clarice's mind drifted to the British gentleman she had met a few weeks prior, something about him bothered her but she couldn't put her finger on it.

After pushing it from her mind, she rolled over and buried her face into Scotty's chest before falling into a deep sleep.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, Scotty and Clarice made sure to leave seperately, not wanting anyone to know about them just yet.

Scotty left first, making it look as if he was dropping off a PADD to Clarice, then she left.

Once in engineering, Scotty noticed Keenser wandering around with a few tools looking as if he were looking for an invisible problem, "Oi! What are ya doin?! Wasting time like that!"

Clarice watched and couldn't help but smile, the two seemed like brothers and reminded her of her childhood with Leonard.

_"Clarice! Quit climbing! You're going to fall and hurt yourself!" _  
_A very young Clarice was up in a tall tree, her brother down below watching_  
_and waiting for her to fall. _  
_"I'll be fine Leo! I've done it a million times before!" she called_  
_down to him as she climbed even higher._  
_Leonard rolled his eyes and positioned himself beneath her,_  
_ready to catch her if the worst happened, _  
_"Ya know, most girls play with dolls! Not climb trees and take apart electronics!"_  
_"I'm not most gi-WOAH!" _  
_Before she could finish her sentence, the branch beneath her foot broke, sending her tumbling down the 13 foot tree towards the ground below._  
_Leonard had managed to break her fall, but he couldn't keep _  
_her arm from breaking upon collision. _  
_After her parents took her and got a cast put on,_  
_Leonard took care of her and helped her until the cast came off._

It took her a moment to snap back to reality, but as soon as she did, Scotty handed her a PADD and a tricorder, "These are for me?"

"Aye! I didn't tell you to pass em on, did I?" Scotty asked before motioning for her to follow him, "Now then! The warp core is right here, beautiful thing she is. The SLIGHTEST reading goes wrong, you find the problem and fix it! You can't fix it, find me or Keenser! We'll find it and show you how to fix it so you don't have to get us next time. This over here..."

Clarice picked up the pace to keep up, mentally noting where everything was.

"This is the main deflector dish! Hopefully this won't need work but if it does it is usually a two person job. Any questions?" Scotty asked crossing his arms.

"Don't think so. This seems mostly like the typical science vessel drive system used for one or two year missions. Usually need weekly tune ups with daily up keep. Warp drive is somewhat unstable so it needs to be isolated from any magnetic interference of ANY kind. Deflector dish is your standard issue 4 model with the ability to keep shields up for several hours unless we're under attack in that case two to three hours. Anything I missed?" she asked smiling and placing her right hand on her hip.

Scotty stared in shock for a moment before smiling and raising his eyebrow, "Not bad for a new girl. Perhaps I should just step back and wait to see if you NEED help."

"It could work. Trial run?" Clarice said holding up her tricorder.

"Aye, I think we'll do that," Scotty said stepping aside, "Have at it."

Clarice simply smiled before going to work, starting with checking the warp nacelles and energy output on one of the consoles.

Scotty watched and nodded a bit as she seemed to just fall into her personal niche.

After a moment, he looked to Keenser, then to Clarice, the back at Keenser, "It's not like that! I swear! Okay maybe she's smart...and funny...and sexy...and is good with a wrench..."

Keenser said nothing but tilted his head a little.

"Oh aight! Maybe it is like that but don't say anything!" Scotty snapped before storming off.

As she worked, Clarice seemed to loose track of time.

After what felt like an hour of computer work, shifting polarities, managing the warp core and other jobs, that was actually abou six, Kirk himself decided to check on the new engineer.

"McCoy!" he called out seeing her on the upper cat walk eyes focused on her PADD.

After a moment, Clarice snapped out of her daze and looked at the captain, "I'll be down in a moment sir!"

Scotty walked over to Kirk and then turned to look at Clarice, "She's hard worker sir. Didn't even really have to train her or anything."

"That's good. I'm glad she's working out for ya," Kirk said before walking over to Clarice as she dismounted the ladder.

"What can I do for you captain?" Clarice asked standing up straight and looking Kirk in the eye.

"Just came to check up on you. Just curious," Kirk said smirking a bit and holding his chin, "You've never been off world have you?"

"No sir. This is my first time ever leaving earth," she explained, unsure of what he was trying to say.

"I see...How would you like to accompany me and Bones down to Nibiru? Your first away mission," he suggested crossing his arms as he waited for an answer.

Usually, Clarice would have jumped on the opportunity, but this time she was hesitant, "With all due respect sir, I think I'll hang back this time."

"Really? Because Bones thought you would be more than willing to go," Kirk said shifting his weight, "Are you two arguing or something?"

"No sir, I just wanted some more time to familiarize with The Enterprise and her inner workings," Clarice said trying to dodge a bullet.

"Well then, get ready."

"What? But sir, I ju-"

"I just asked if you'd like to go. I didn't say it was optional," Jim said smiling triumphantly before he turned and walked away.

Once he was gone, Clarice let out a groan of frustration, "Is he always like this?"

"Pretty much. If ya don't catch him before he makes up his mind...it cannay be changed," Scotty explained before taking her PADD, "Enjoy your first away mission."

Clarice turned to Scotty, gently kissed his lips and smiled, "Thanks. I'll see you soon."

What she didn't know was the Kirk was hidden in the door way when he saw them kiss, bringing a smirk to his face, No wonder her and Bones are fighting...

After one more kiss, Clarice hurried to the shuttle bay, hoping that this mission would be uneventful. 

* * *

To Be Continued...


	5. Chapter 5

When she got to the hangar, she wasn't surprised to see everyone else already gathered and preparing to leave.

As far as she could tell, it would be Kirk, Bones, Spock, Sulu and a woman she had yet to meet that Clarice assumed to be Uhura.

She hurried over and saluted Kirk, "Sorry I'm late sir...I got a little lost..."

"No problem, ensign," Kirk said handing her a phaser, "As long as you're not late."

Clarice accepted the phaser and placed it on her belt.

Uhura walked over and held out her hand, "Lt. Uhura. I hear you're McCoy's sister. Must be fun."

"If you could call it that, Ensign McCoy," Clarice said shaking the LT's outstretched hand.

Once everyone was prepped, they boarded the shuttle and began their descent.

While waiting for Sulu to take them down to the planet, Clarice began looking over the information on the planet.

"Um Captain?" she said looking up from the PADD.

"Yes?"

"Sir, this culture...they're still in their prehistoric age...is there a reason we're going down there rather than surveying it from the Enterprise?"

"Ensign, you did your research right?" Kirk asked looking over at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course captain. I know about how you got the Enterprise and your exploits," she replied.

"Then you should know I have my reasons. How much longer Sulu?"

"About ten minutes captain," Sulu replied as he hit a few switches.

"I understand Captain, I just wanted to make sure we're breaking the rules ethically," Clarice replied with a bit of a smile as she went back to reading.

Once they got to the beach, their mission became apparent to the new engineer.

The volcano at the center of the island was billowing black smoke and causing the earth beneath their feet to tremble.

"Mr. Spock. Is your device ready?" Kirk asked turning to the vulcan, "It is captain, I am ready to deploy it as soon as the natives are out of the kill zone."

"Sulu, Uhura, you two are going to fly the shuttle into the ash cloud and get Spock just close enough to deploy his nuclear ice cube. Bones, McCoy, you two are with me," Kirk said before turning to walk away, "Let's move people, we don't want the natives getting to fond of us."

Before either of the McCoy siblings could object, Kirk already had his transmitter out, "Scotty! I need you to take the Enterprise and park her under the ocean here! If something goes south, we may need to leave in a hurry!"

"Captain, I cannay think of a good reason to submerge the ship! She may not be able to handle the salt water!" Scotty snapped, his voice sounding irate and concerned.

"Scotty! Just do it!" Kirk snapped before hanging up, "Shall we?"

Clarice looked at Bones and sighed, "After you."

Bones rolled his eyes and started walking beside Kirk as Clarice followed him, "How exactly are we going to clear the kill zone Jim?"

"Leave that to me and Clarice. You just find us a ride outta here," Kirk said motioning for Clarice to follow him into the thick red jungle.

Clarice nodded at Kirk and hurried to keep up with him, "Sir, again, how are we going to blend in?"

"We'll figure something out...here we go!"

The two came across what looked to be an abandoned hut with some old blue robes hanging from a clothesline.

There were about four robes, plenty for herself, Jim and Leonard.

"Thanks for waiting!" Bones snapped after he caught up, "What are you wearing?"

"It's called blending in dumbass," Clarice explained as she put the long sleeved robe on and covered her face with the head scarf, "You might want to try it."

"Jim, how do we know this fabric or whatever it is isn't poisonous to us?" Bones asked before Kirk threw one of the robes in his face.

"Just shut up and get dressed Bones, besides," Jim said as he to put the headscarf on, "Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I think he left it back on the shuttle next to his air sickness bags," Clarice commented making sure her face was completely covered.

"Hey! I enjoy and adventure as much as the next guy! I would just do it where there isn't an imminent volcanic explosion!" Bones replied trying to remain calm as he too got the strange alien robes on.

"Alright! Enough. Now then, when we clear the people, you have our ride ready. We'll meet the others at the beach with the shuttle craft. Any objections," Kirk explained looking at both of the McCoys.

"No sir," Clarice replied, hoping that Bones wouldn't bring out the worst in her like he usually did.

"You know I object but what choice do I have?" Bones snapped before storming off into the brush.

"Alright let's go," Kirk said as her motioned for Clarice to follow him.

"Yes sir," Clarice said following her captain through the dense red foliage, "And how do we pull them away from their temple?"

"Not sure," Kirk said as they pushed through the trees and such, "How fast can you run?"

"Well...fairly fast, sir. But why would that be important?"

"We'll have to wait and see," Kirk said halting her at the edge of the trees, "For now, we need to blend in and get into the temple."

"There's a group heading in now with a few other dressed like us. We can just walk over and mimic them. We can follow them in and find a way to get them out."

Kirk chuckled and smiled through the head wrap, "I knew there was a reason I recruited you."

After a moment, the two starfleet officers made their way behind the group of Nibirunians, hoping to gain access to the crude wooden temple.

The aliens simply cast a glance at them before bowing their heads as they proceeded forward.

Once inside, Kirk and Clarice noticed about fifty of the Nibirunians bowing to a simple scroll hanging from a makeshift altar.

Once the plain clothed natives broke off from those wearing the blue robes, the two infiltrators followed the other blue clad natives, copying their movements as they did.

Once the others assumed their worship positions, on their knees, face down on the ground and palms to the sky, Kirk made his move.

Before Clarice could react, Kirk grabbed the scroll and began running.

The natives began panicking and screaming, running after Kirk and Clarice as they hurried back into the brush.

"THAT WAS YOUR PLAN!?" Clarice cried out, ripping the head scarf off and jumping over a fallen tree, "TAKE THE ONE THING THAT LOOKED MOST IMPORTANT TO THEM!?"

"SEEMED LIKE A GOOD IDEA!" Kirk replied pulling his communicator out and hailing the shuttle hiding in the ash cloud, "SPOCK IS THAT THING READY YET!?"

Spock's voice rang out over the communicator, "We are ready captain."

Before he could reply, a large creature let out a roar as it rose up on its hind legs, startling Kirk and Clarice.

Kirk let out a cry and stunned the creature, leaving both him and Clarice bewildered.

"Dammit man! That was our ride!" Bones snapped also taking his face covering off.

"Shut up Bones!" Clarice snapped pulling her phaser out and running again.

Bones and Kirk glanced back at the angry natives and began running as well while Kirk kept talking to Spock, "Their out of the kill zone! It's all you now Spock!"

Clarice noticed that Bones and Kirk had fallen a ways behind and was about to ready her phaser when she remembered the prime directive.

Swearing, she picked up a few rocks and threw them at the natives to slow them down.

Kirk quickly hung the scroll on a tree and kept running.

"Captain! The beach is the other way!" Bones snapped as he and Clarice ran beside Kirk.

"I know that! We're not headed for the beach!" Kirk called out jumping over another fallen tree as the natives halted mid step and began worshiping the scroll.

"You've got to be kidding!" Clarice snapped as the robe kept catching her legs as she ran.

"No he's not! God I hate this!" Bones snapped before watching Kirk jump from a cliff.

Clarice and Bones had a split second to think before they too jumped.

Below was the ocean, the blurred outline of the Enterprise shone on the surface.

Once they hit the water, the three people lost the robes and quickly pulled out their breathing apparatuses before swimming for the torpedo bay.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	6. Chapter 6

Once inside, the water began draining and the three crewmen held onto the rails so as not to hit the ground.

After the water was completely drained, the inside hatch opened and Scotty stood there looking a bit unhappy, "A starship underwater? That doesn't make a bit of sense Captain. I cannay guarantee she'll be able to handle this kind of pressure."

Kirk dropped his breathing apparatus and sighed, "Not now Scotty. Is Spock still in the volcano?"

"He is," Scotty replied as Kirk and the other two began running to the bridge.

Once on the bridge, Kirk went straight to Uhura, "Can you get Spock?"

Uhura, looking panicked, nodded to the captain, "Yes sir but the heat is frying his coms."

While they worked to get ahold of him, Clarice made a break for engineering, hoping they could get to Spock before things got too bad.

Once in engineering, Clarice immediately started looking over the specs, "Looks like we're good to go. Engineering to bridge!"

"Chekov here, what is it?"

"We are ready to go as soon as we need to. I suggest we do so soon though. The tides are throwing off our electro magnetics," Clarice explained adjusting one of the screens.

"Got it. Thank you," Chekov replied before shutting the com link off.

Though she couldn't tell what was happening on the bridge, the tension just from the rest of the crew could have been cut with a knife.

After a few moments, the engines roared to life and the ship began to make it's ascent from the ocean floor.

The volcanic ash and heat hit the ship causing some turbulence as they got into position to beam Spock up.

There was a moment of silence before Clarice felt the ship take off back into orbit.

After everything seemed to be in the clear, Clarice hurried back to the bridge, only to be passed by Kirk and Bones as they ran to the transport room.

"Scotty, what happened?" Clarice asked as Scotty walked over to her.

"We got Spock back. Broke a few rules while we were at it," Scotty explained before looking her over, "You're still drenched."

A quick glance, Clarice realized she had gone straight to engineering while still soaked in sea water, "I guess your right. I'd better go change."

"I'll walk with you. Engineering is on the way," Scotty said bashfully as they started walking.

Once they got in the lift, Clarice gently held Scotty's hand and chuckled, "Told you I'd be fine."

"I knew you'd be alright, if not I'd have to have a word with the captain," Scotty replied smiling a bit, a light blush coming to his cheeks.

Once the lift stopped, both Clarice and Scotty swiftly began walking to her quarters.

After getting inside and closing the door, Clarice went to get a new uniform to change into, "I'll be right back..."

Scotty smirked and leaned against the table as he waited.

Clarice took the wet uniform off and walked out from the partition to grab her clean uniform off the bed.

The scottish man stared at Clarice's pale and fit form as she got dressed, "So how do you stay in such good shape?"

"I just do cardio. Of course, Kirk making us run through alien forests helps too," she explained with a chuckle as she got her pants on.

"Aye, he does have a knack for creating situations like that," Scotty replied walking over and hugging Clarice from behind before she put her shirt on.

Clarice chuckled and turned in his arms to face him, "I hope you don't cause trouble like that."

The engineer could only chuckle as he placed his lips against hers, "No...I'm a bit worse than that..."

"I see," Clarice replied in between kisses, "That could make life very interesting."

Just before they could go any further, a ship wide message for everyone to get to their posts right away.

"Damn, just when things were gettiing good," Scotty remarked as Clarice put her shirt on.

"Yeah, funny how things work," she replied as she put her badge back on and followed Scotty to engineering, "It's not entirely bad though. This ship would fall apart without you."

"Not entirely true! I think you're going to do a great job keeping her together," Scotty replied as they entered the lift.

"With all due respect, I've only been here for a couple of days. I'm not sure I deserve that kind of praise," Clarice replied as the lift came to a halt, "Besides, she seems to really like you."

The two shared a laugh as they walked into engineering and began working again.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	7. Chapter 7

Once back on Earth, the captain had approved everyone's shore leave while they waited for their next assignment.

Bones was just about to board the shuttle when he noticed Clarice looking over the specs, "How's everything look?"

"Why? You scared?" Clarice asked looking up at her older brother, "It's not like it's going to fall out of the sky."

"I was just trying to make small talk!" Bones snapped before he felt Clarice's hand on his shoulder.

"I was joking, everything is fine Leonard," she replied chuckling at his over reaction.

Bones huffed a little and started back to the shuttle, "You got plans when you get back?"

"Probably just gonna go home and relax. Maybe go visit mom and dad," Clarice replied setting her PADD down and walking with him to the shuttle, "You?"

"I have some work to do when I get back," Bones replied as they boarded the shuttle.

Scotty was already seated in the back looking over some stuff on his PADD when Clarice walked over and sat beside him.

"You're awful quiet," Clarice commented as she buckled in.

"Not really, just focused," Scotty replied putting his PADD down on the empty seat beside him, "What do you say to going and getting an actual drink?"

"I think that'd be nice since the last one was cut short," the brunette replied smiling and holding Scotty's hand as the shuttle began taking off.

Bones glanced back from his seat, only to roll his eyes and turn back to the front.

The descent was uneventful but Bones still clung to the arm of the chair as if it were falling out from under him.

Once they landed, Clarice and Scotty left before Bones could stop them and headed for the nearest bar.

After getting in and being seated at a table by the window, Clarice looked at Scotty and smiled, "So, a chance to get to know you outside of work."

"Aye," Scotty replied smiling at her and waiving down a bartender, "Not very often I get to do this."

"So, what do you want to know about me?"

"What is with your brother?"

Clarice wouldn't help but laugh a bit, "He's a bit overprotective. I wasn't the most careful kid growing up. He took care of me in this one instance when I broke my arm climbing a tree."

"I see. So he still thinks of you as the little rascal running around?" Scotty asked accepting the bottle of scotch from the bartender.

"He does," she replied with a laugh as she accepted the shot that Scotty had poured for her, "He really doesn't see me as an adult really. He still sees me as the little sister he had to help every time she scrapes her knee."

"At least he cares," Scotty replied downing the shot and pouring another one, "He's just your typical older brother."

"I guess you're right," she muttered downing her shot as well, "Now if he could only get off his high horse."

"Now then, your turn," Scotty said pouring a couple more shots.

"Alright, how'd Kirk find you?" Clarice asked smiling a bit as she picked up the shot glass and gently raised it to her lips.

"Oh well, me and Keenser were out on this frozen wasteland of a planet, Kirk had been abandoned there, I saved his life so he recruited me. Simple as that," Scotty said tipping his shot glass back and swallowing the scotch.

"That's it? No fantastic escapade behind it?" Clarice asked, somewhat surprised.

"Well, I wouldn't want to bore you with the details."

"Oh please, bore me to tears."

Hearing that, Scotty smiled a bit and began telling her about how he met Kirk and they became acquainted.

After talking for a few hours, the two made their way back to Clarice's apartment, obviously with plans that involved anything OTHER than sleeping.

The next morning, Clarice awoke and looked at Scotty, the sheet barely covering above his waist.

A quick glance of the clock revealed the time to be ten till eight.

Normally, Clarice would have been up, dressed and on her way to work, but since she was on shore leave now, she simply wrapped herself up with a sheet and walked to the window.

From her apartment, there was a clear view of the Starfleet Archives and the horizon just past it.

It wasn't until she looked at her computer that Clarice realized that she had a new message.

_Notice to Clarice McCoy. _  
_Captain James Tiberius Kirk has been relieved of his command._  
_You will not be reassigned, you will remain engineer on the _  
_U.S.S. Enterprise._  
_Signed, Starfleet Headquartes_

"Oh my god..Scotty!" Clarice cried out bracing herself against the desk.

Scotty woke with a start and hurried over, not thinking to cover his naked body, "What is it!?"

"It's Kirk...he's no longer captain of the Enterprise..." she said shakily, "They took her away from him."

Before Scotty could get a word in edgewise, a huge explosion shook the apartment, throwing both of the engineers to the ground.

"What in the bloody hell was that!" Scotty cried out running to the window, "Oh my god..."

"What happened?" Clarice asked standing up and making her way over.

What she saw almost knocked all reason from her mind.

The Archives, or rather, where the Archives once stood was billowing black smoke from a giant pile of rubble that covered the ground.

"We need to get to H.Q. and figure out what's going on," Clarice snapped grabbing her uniform from the floor and hastily throwing it on.

"I'm with you on this one!" Scotty replied getting dressed as well.

Once they were clothed, both engineers burst out the door and hurried to headquarters post haste.

* * *

To Be Continued...


	8. Chapter 8

Once at HQ, Scotty went to find the man in charge while Clarice searched for Kirk.

After a few minutes, she saw him walking beside Spock, both wearing their formal uniforms, "Captain!"

Kirk turned his head and saw Clarice running over to him, "I'm not the captain anymore. They gave her back to Pike."

"Sir, I don't care about that. What the hell happened?" she asked looking worried and unsure of what was giong to happen next.

"Still not sure. We're on our way to find out 'll keep you posted," Kirk explained before walking away with Spock.

As they left, Clarice went outside, pulled out her communicator and paged her brother.

"Doctor McCoy here."

"Leonard, it's me. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm helping out at the explosion site. Where are you?"

"Starfleet Headquarters. I just ran into Kirk. He's on his way to a meeting now. I'll come over there and help you out as well," Clarice explained as she started walking.

"No! I appreciate the offer but I need you there to keep me updated," Bones snapped as he knelt beside a woman and checked her vitals.

"Dammit Leonard! I'm a doctor too! I would be of more help there!" Clarice snapped angrily as Scotty walked outside.

"I know but right now we need intel more th-"

"Dammit Leonard I'm coming to help!" Clarice snapped before cutting the transmission off.

"You'd better get going. I'll keep working here," Scotty said taking her hand in his.

"Are you gonna be alright here?" she asked taking his other hand and leaning in close to him.

The look in her eyes reminded Scotty of a frightened child, but he just smiled, "I'll be fine. They need your help over there."

Clarice simply nodded and kissed him deeply, "Alright...be safe..."

"You do the same," he replied holding her close before they let go of one another and Clarice ran to one of the departing ambulances.

"Ma'am, this is for medical staff only," the EMT said as Clarice grabbed a tricorder and a med bag.

"With all due respect, I'm trained in emergency medical tactics as well sir. From what I've heard you're going to need all the help you can get," Clarice snapped looking the man in the eye.

The EMT hesitated before nodding to her, "Alright, get in. We need to hurry."

* * *

"I need a coroner over here! This one didn't make it!" Bones called out as he closed the eyes of a vulcan woman that had a severe head wound and irreparable internal damage.

He then stood up when he saw another ambulance coming and sighed, "Alright, more help."

Once it landed, Clarice quickly got out and ran over to Bones, "What's the situation?"

"We've got more deceased than we do wounded. The wounded seem to be managing, even if it's just barely," Bones explained leading her over to an area the wounded had been laid out, "Get started treating what you can. We'll decide from there who needs to be transferred to the hospital first."

"Got it," Clarice said hurrying over and kneeling beside the first one that was a middle aged man, African American, with major external wounds and possible internal bleeding, "Sir, can you hear me?"

The man groaned slightly and looked at her, "Y...yeah..."

"Alright, don't speak. I need you to try and remain conscious. You might have a concussion and sever internal damage. Just nod if you understand," Clarice said flipping her tricorder open and using the heart monitor to check his vitals.

Though it was extremely painful, he managed a small nod.

"Alright...blood pressure is rather high...heart beat..." she muttered looking over the stats, "You should be alright, just stay still as possible so I can check your interior."

Swiftly, Clarice switched instruments and began scanning his body, hoping it was just a fracture or a break.

Before she could finish, the man started coughing and hacking, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth.

"Dammit! I need help over here!" she called out injecting the man with a stabilizer and bracing his shoulders as he went into shock.

A couple of emts hurried over and braced him so Clarice could hopefully get him stable enough to transport.

"Don't you dare give up on me," Clarice snapped injecting another dose of stabilizer into his bloodstream before placing a defibrillator on his chest, "If he goes, I need you to start a regular defibrillator cycle!"

The EMT holding his right arm nodded and took the control from her while Clarice began working on getting his blood pressure to normal.

After a minute, the man flat lined, blood now filling his mouth.

"Dammit. Tilt his head to the side! Clear the blood! If he comes back, he'll choke on it!" Clarice snapped pointing at the EMT holding his left arm.

Once the blood was out of his mouth, Clarice cleared the body and signaled for the EMT to start the cycle.

The electrical shock surged though the body but didn't seem to work.

"Again!" Clarice snapped watching to see if his vitals would be restored.

After what seemed like an eternity, it was obvious he wouldn't make it.

"Damn...call Time of Death. I'll keep going on the next one," Clarice said gathering her stuff and going to the next patient.

After hours of work, the deceased and wounded had been taken care of, everything was done as far as medical went.

"Who the hell would do this?" Clarice muttered as she wiped some of the blood from her hands with a towel.

"I'm not sure but whoever did," Bones said walking over and handing her a bottle of water, "They are one sick son of a bitch."

"I agree. They need to be held accountable for this NOW," Clarice replied before taking a drink of the water.

Just as Bones went to say something, Clarice's communicator went off.

"McCoy here," Clarice replied flipping it open.

"It's Scotty. I don't have any information yet. I just wanted to see how things are on your end. Anything helpful come up?" Scotty asked.

"Nothing, just a lot of casualties and wounded. I'll be heading back to Headquarters in a bit. Keep looking, you may find something," Clarice replied before hanging up.

Looking down , Clarice noticed her hands were almost black with all the dried blood and grime on them.

"First time working an emergency?" Bones asked leading her over to the makeshift wash station that had been set up.

"Yeah. The closest I came was working in the ER during clinicals," she explained running her hands under the water and scrubbing the blood off.

"ER looks like childs play compared to this. You'd better get back. In case Kirk finds something," Bones said handing her a towel once she was done.

"Alright. I'll keep you posted," Clarice replied before hurrying to one of the ambulances headed back to HQ. 

* * *

To Be Continued...


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry for the short chapter. Having a hard time writing due to stress right now. Next chapter will be longer I promise.

* * *

After the ambulance landed, Clarice hurried to get out.

Waiting by the doors was Scotty, a slight smile of relief on his face.

Clarice jogged over and hugged him, "I told you I'd be fine."

"I know, doesn't mean I won't worry," he said holding her close, "I'm just glad you're back."

They held each other a few moments longer before letting go, allowing Scotty to see the dried blood stains on her shirt.

"It's not mine Scotty. There weren't many survivors..." the young woman explained grimly.

"I'm so sorry. Let's get you a new shirt," he said taking her by the hand.

"Don't worry about it," Clarice replied stopping him midstep, "We've got more important matters to deal with."

"Are ya sure?"

Clarice nodded and motioned towards the door, "We'd better get back to work."

As she started walking towards the door though, the exhaustion that had built up at the explosion sight hit her like a train and Clarice fell to her knees.

Scotty hurried and tried to catch her but didn't reach her soon enough.

"I-I'm fine...really..." she said trying to stand back up only to fall again.

"No you're not. I'm taking you home," Scotty snapped picking her up bridal style and walking over to a transport.

Clarice blushed a bit as she was carried, her arms draped over her stomach, "I can walk."

"Quit bein so stubborn! You're not a super hero ya know. You're only human," Scotty snapped as he gently set her in the cab.

She knew he was right, but Clarice didn't want him to be.

The first man that had been lost, his face was burned into her skull, the image of the blood pouring from his mouth and the wounds he had received had tormented her all day.

Scotty told the driver where to go before getting in as well, "Clarice, tell me something."

Broken from her daze, Clarice turned to him, "What is it?"

"Why do you feel you have to do so much on your own?"

That question had caught her off guard but she knew she couldn't avoid it, "Because of Leonard. He was always taking car of me...sheltering me...I don't want to be dependent. I want to prove to him that I'm able to manage on my own."

After a few moments of silence, Scotty grabbed Clarice by the shoulder and embraced her, "You don't need to prove anything. I know you're strong and Bones knows that too."

Clarice hugged him back but said nothing. She just held him, breathing in his scent and feeling his warmth.

The cab was rather quiet for the rest of the trip before pulling up to the apartments.

Before she could get out on her own, Scotty was already out and opening her door for her, "Let's get you to bed."

Clarice chuckled and started to get out when Scotty picked her up again, "Woah! Scotty, I think I can walk now."

"Don't be ridiculous. It's just to the lift, right?" he said smiling goofily at her.

She didn't put up a fight this time, she just looped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek, "You're right. Thanks sweety."

Scotty's cheeks turned a light shade of pink as he walked, "No problem..."

Once they got up to her apartment, Scotty placed her on the bed and immediately went to get a change of clothes for his girlfriend.

"Sweety, you don't have to do that," Clarice called out taking her stained shirt off only to reveal the blood had seeped through the cloth and stained her skin.

"Really?" Scotty asked standing in the doorway, a pair of black pajama pants and a tank top draped over his left arm.

"Alright," she replied forcing herself to stand up and walking over to him, "You were right."

"Could you say that again? This ear doesn't hear very well," Scotty said tilting his head a bit.

"Don't push your luck," Clarice whispered into his ear before kissing his neck, "I'm going to take a shower."

Scotty handed her the clothes and watched as she slowly walked to the bathroom, "Need any help?"

"Possibly," she called out from the bathroom, tossing her bra out the door on to the hallway floor.

Smiling, Scotty walked down the hall only to hear a loud thud come from the bathroom, "CLARICE!"

He hurried in to find Clarice unconscious on the floor, "Oh my god no!"

In a flash he pulled his communicator out and called for an ambulance before grabbing her shoulders and holding her to his chest, "Don't do this to me...please..."

* * *

To Be Continued...


	10. Chapter 10

At the hospital, Clarice was unconscious on a hospital bed and Scotty was outside the room looking in, biting his nail nervously.

"What the hell happened!?" Bones snapped as he hurried towards the engineer.

"I don't know. She was getting ready to take a shower and collapsed," Scotty explained, his gaze still fixed on his girlfriend.

The doctor that had been looking her over walked out and looked at the two men, "Which one of you has medical authority?"

Bones sighed and looked at him, "That'd be me. What's going on?"

"Well sir," the doctor started, his face solemn, "She's expecting."

The news hit both men hard, Scotty staggered back and leaned against the wall while Bones just stared in astonishment.

"How far along?" Bones finally asked casting a glance at Scotty.

"About two months. The pregnancy is taking its toll though. She's suffering hyperemesis gravidarum. We can't medicate her though because of the fetus and because she hasn't sough treatment prior to today. There's something peculiar about it's blood that would negate the medication. We don't know how to treat her right now. I'm sorry," the doctor explained in a hushed voice.

Bones rubbed his forehead and turned to Scotty who was still in shock, "Did you know?"

"No. We haven't been together long enough for this to happen..." Scotty explained as he slowly came to.

"Dammit!" Bones snapped punching the wall in frustration.

"Hold on," the doctor explained grabbing Bones' shoulder, "It's not critical. She just needs bed rest for a day."

"So, she won't have to be on 24/7 bed rest?" Scotty asked sounding concerned.

"No. Also, for her sanity...let her continue to work until the last trimester. With her state of mind right now between the Enterprise and the incident at the archives...work may be best for her," the doctor explained before leaving.

"You didn't know anything about this?" Bones asked walking over and looking through the window.

"No," Scotty said opening the door, "Nothing at all."

The elder of the McCoy's watched as Scot walked over and sat down beside her, his hand going straight for hers.

In his mind, he knew Clarice truly loved him, but he couldn't get past the idea of his little sister all grown up.

With a sigh, he left to go find Jim.

* * *

The next morning, Clarice came to, her mind foggy as she tried o recall what happened.

"Clarice?" Scotty asked, waking up in his chair as her hand moved from his.

"W...what happened?" she asked forcing herself to sit up.

"You collapsed so I brought you here..." Scotty explained brushing her hair out of her face, "You feeling alright?"

"Yeah...bit of a headache though. What's wrong? You look worried," Clarice said looking at him.

"Yeah...there's something I should tell you," Scotty said taking her hand again and gripping it tightly.

Bones had returned to get his sister when he noticed that she looked scared and shocked, "Oh no..."

Scotty finished explaining what the doctor had told him when Bones came in.

"Clarice, are you ok?" Bones asked walking over and taking her wrist to check her pulse.

"I'm fine. I just heard..." Clarice said taking her wrist from his hand.

"I know what you're thinking but I think you should take some time," Bones said crossing his arms.

"Leonard. I am not stopping until I absolutely have to. You look more stressed than usual," Clarice said standing up and changing subjects, "What happened?"

"There was a fire fight. The bastard that blew up the archives tried to take the commanding officers down," Bones explained handing her a uniform he brought.

"What? Is Kirk okay?" she asked putting the pants on.

"He's fine. Stubborn bastard if nothing," Bones said before crossing his arms, "Admiral Pike is dead though."

Clarice had turned away and taken the hospital gown off to put the shirt on when Bones mentioned the news of the admirals' passing, "Sorry to hear that..."

"If you are determined to go we leave in three hours."

"Leonard," Clarice said after getting her shirt on and turning to him, "Please don't tell anyone about...me."

"Doctor patient confidentiality," Bones said with a hint of dislike as he left. 

* * *

To Be Continued...


	11. Chapter 11

Once the medical reports had been sorted, both Scotty and Clarice hurried to make their way to the Enterprise.

In the cab on the way, Scotty turned to Clarice, "Are you sure you're up for this?"

"Of course. It's not like I'm all of a sudden handicapped. I can take care of this," Clarice replied smiling sweetly at him.

"Alright," Scotty said taking her hands with concern in his eyes, "But please...just be careful."

"Sweetie, please don't worry,"she said grasping his hands tighter before kissing him on the lips, "Just please...don't start treating me differently."

Scotty let out a weary sigh before nodding, "Alright."

Clarice smiled and kissed him again, "Thank you."

The two shared one last kiss before the cab stopped and let them out.

Kirk was walking around and talking to Bones as they started towards the shuttle.

In a hurry, Clarice motioned for Scotty to follow her to the shuttle.

Once on board, they both took seats beside where Kirk and Bones were.

"Captain, is everything alright?" she asked leaning over towards him, "You look a little worse for wear."

"I'm fine. Don't worry," Kirk said giving her a reassuring smile before turning back to Spock.

Meanwhile, Bones was trying to do a check up since Kirk hadn't made it in after the shooting.

Scotty grabbed a PADD from one of the other crew members and began trying to look up the mission specs, "What the bloody hell?"

"What is it?" Clarice asked looking at the PADD.

"I'm not sure...but we're going to Kronos..."

Clarice's face drained of color as she grabbed the PADD and began looking it over as well, "What the hell? What is Admiral Marcus thinking?"

As she browsed through the info, a picture came up that brought a knot to her throat.

Seeing her face, Scotty took her hand, "What's wrong?"

After a moment, she finally managed to speak, "Nothing...there's just...something about him that seems...inhuman."

"I tend to agree with ya there," Scotty replied, still trying to get over the fact that they were headed to the Klingon home world.

"Captain," Clarice said looking at Kirk, "Are you sure we should do this?"

"Ensign, I understand you're still adjusting to this life, let me tell you one thing," Kirk said with a sigh, "There is no method to the madness. What happens, happens. I say just sit back and hold."

With advice like that, Clarice felt there was no more use arguing and just sat back as the shuttle made it's way to the Enterprise.

Upon disembarking though, Scotty and Clarice recieved a unwelcome sight.

"What in the hell is this?" Scotty asked upon seeing several missiles being unloaded into the docking area.

Kirk and the others had already left so Clarice went to find the person unloading the cargo to get some answers.

After a few minutes of searching, Clarice found the man giving orders, "Excuse me sir! Who ordered these?"

The man looked at her a scoffed, "That's classified."

"Oi! I'm going to need some specs or blueprints before I can authorize these!" Scotty snapped briskly walking over, Keenser following closely.

"I'm sorry but that information is classified as well," the man said crossing his arms.

"I'll get the captain," Clarice said walking over to a communications terminal, "Captain, could you come to engineering?"

"Be there in a minute," Kirk replied before the line went quiet.

As soon as Kirk walked into Engineering, Scotty stormed over, "Captain, I cannay approve these warheads."

Kirk sighed and rubbed his forehead, "Mr. Scott, I understand your concerns, but we need these torpedoes on board."

"Due respect, sir, but photon torpedoes run on fuel. Now I cannot detect the type of fuel that's in the compartments on these torpedoes, because it's shielded. Now I asked for the specifications, but he said..." Scotty said pointing to the cargo man.

"It's classified," was all he replied.

"It's Classified. So I said, no specs, no signature!" Scotty snapped placing his hands on his hips, "Now, if you'll excuse me, sir, I have a warp core to prime."

Clarice sighed and looked from Scotty to Kirk before casting a glance at Scotty and following him as he began walking towards the core.

"Mr Scott, I need you to approve those weapons," Kirk pleaded as he followed the two.

"Do you know what this is, Captain?"

"I don't have time for a lecture, Scotty!"

"Do you know what this is?" Scotty asked again, the anger in his voice more prominent.

"It's a warp core," Kirk said rolling his eyes.

"It's a radioactive catastrophe waiting to happen. A subtle shift in magnetic output from, say, firing one or more of six dozen torpedoes with an unknown payload, could start a chain reaction which will kill every living thing on this ship. Letting those torpedoes on board the Enterprise is the last straw, " Scotty explained sternly, slowly losing what was left his temper.

"What was the first straw?" Kirk asked raising an eyebrow.

"What was the...? There are plenty of straws! How about Starfleet confiscating my transwarp equation? And now some madman is using it to hop a cross the galaxy. Where do you think he got it from?"

"We have our orders, Scotty."

"That's what scares me. This is clearly a military operation. Is that what we are now? Cause, I thought we were explorers. I thought we..." Scotty was cut off by Kirk in mid sentence.

"Sign for the torpedoes. That's an order."

"Captain," Clarice interjected, "I have to agree with him. We don't know what these could do to our engines. How do we know this won't set off a chain reaction?"

"We have our orders!" Kirk snapped, his voice turning sour.

"Right, well, you leave me no choice but to resign my duties," Scotty said holding out his PADD to Kirk.

Kirk sighed and shook his head, "Oh, come on, Scotty."

Scotty grit his teeth slightly, "You're giving me no choice, sir."

"You're not giving me much of a choice!"

"I will not stand by and..."

"Will you just make an exception and sign!" Kirk snapped trying to ignore Scotty's outstretched hand.

"Do you accept my resignation or not?!" Scotty snapped,

"I do!"

Both Scotty and Clarice looked shocked as Kirk took the PADD from him.

"I do. You are relieved, Mr. Scott."

"Jim. For the love of God, do not use those torpedoes," Scotty said as he began to leave.

Clarice saw this and hurried after him, "Scotty!"

Scotty turned to Clarice and sighed, "I'm sorry love...I cannot standbye while they use those...whatever they are...Come with me."

As he took her hand, Clarice felt scared and confused.

After a moment of silence, she spoke up, her voice cracking as she tried to hold back her tears, "I...I can't...I'm so sorry Scotty, but I can't..."

Scotty saw the look in her eyes before nodding, "Alright..."

Clarice swallowed back her tears and embraced him, not wanting to let go, "I wish I could explain everything...I really do..."

Feeling her arms around him, Scotty couldn't help but hug her back, "Please, just make sure they don't use them..."

As the shuttle began to prep for departure, Scotty planted one final kiss on her lips before turning to Keenser and signalling for them to leave.

Clarice stood there and watched as the shuttle left, a few tears streaming down her cheeks, before she returned to work.

* * *

To be continued...


	12. Chapter 12

Just before the ship left for Kronos, Kirk approached Chekov, "Mr. Chekov, you've been shadowing Mr. Scott, so you are familiar with engineering systems of this ship?"

Chekov looked up at him and nodded, "Affirmative, sir."

"Good. You're my new chief. Go and put on a red shirt," Kirk said before taking his seat in the captains chair.

"Aye captain," the Russian replied, a look of uncertainty on his face.

Meanwhile, back in engineering, Clarice was adjusting the input/output levels when Chekov walked in, "Taking over for Scotty?"

"Yes. I'm Pavel Andreievich Chekov, nice to meet you," the young man said before accepting a PADD from a passing engineer.

"You as well sir. I've got the warp engines prepped. We're good to go when the captain is ready," Clarice explained walking over and pulling up the output display.

"Mr. Chekov, how are we looking down there?" Kirk asked over the intercom.

Chekov looked over the specs and nodded, "All systems nominal, Captain. Warp available at your command."

"Thank you, Mr. Chekov. Alright, let's ride."

Sulu nodded to him and set their coordinates, "Yes, sir."

Once they were en route, Kirk turned to Uhura, "Open a shipwide channel."

"Channel is open sir," she replied after hitting a few switches.

"Attention, crew of the Enterprise. As most of you know, Christopher Pike, former captain of this ship, and our friend, is dead. The man who killed him has fled our system and is hiding on the Klingon homeworld, somewhere he believes we are unwilling to go. We are on our way there now. Per Admiral Marcus, it is essential that our presence go undetected. Tensions between the Federation and the Klingon Empire have been high, any provocation could lead to an all out war."

Kirk paused a moment to look at Spock with concern.

"I will personally lead a landing party to an abandoned city on the surface of Kronos, where we will capture the fugitive John Harrison, and return him to Earth so he can face judgment for his actions. Alright, lets go get this son of a bitch, Kirk out."

Walking over, Spock looked to Kirk and nodded with approval, Captain, I believe you made the right decision. If I can be of assistance, I would be happy to accompany you on the away team."

Kirk laughed a bit, "You, happy?"

"I was simply attempting to use your vernacular to convey an idea," the Vulcan replied sounding a bit confused.

"Thank you, Mr. Spock."

"So he's really doing this," Clarice muttered as she monitored the warp core radiation levels.

"How are you doing?" Chekov asked as he grabbed a set of tools.

"I'm fine. I need to speak o the captain though, if that's alright with you sir," Clarice said after confirming everything was stable.

"Of course. I've got everything under control," Chekov replied patting her on the shoulder before going to work.

Clarice nodded and hurried to the bridge, hoping to get there before they left.

Halfway up to the bridge something shook the ship, throwing Clarice to the floor.

Over the shipwide channel, Kirk called to engineering, "Mr Chekov, did you break my ship?"

"Sorry, sir! I don't know what happened! The core overheated, I had to activate the emergency stop! It must be a coolant leak, I need time to find it. Sorry, Captain," Chekov replied sounding panicked.

As soon as she reached the bridge, Clarice walked over to Kirk, "Captain, permission to go with you."

"McCoy, I appreciate the offer but I need you up here," Kirk said heading for the lift.

"Sir, with all due respect, if something goes south you'll need medical help down there," Clarice explained as they entered the lift, "I'd rather not be the one to sign your death certificate."

"As much as I appreciate your concern, I'm going to need you up here. Mr. Chekov knows the basics but you are the only one besides Scotty that knows that engine inside and out. With that leak going unrepaired, we're spending more time in Klingon space than we need to. I need you to fix that leak and have us ready, Ensign," Kirk explained as the lift came to a stop and he started towards the shuttles.

Clarice sighed and nodded, "Yes sir. We'll have her ready when you get back."

"Good. I'm counting on you and Chekov!" Kirk called out as he gathered a few things.

The lift closed and Clarice directed it to engineering.

Once she got there, Clarice grabbed a set of tools and began working on diagnostics in hopes to get the warp core back online.

"Any luck?" Clarice asked after half an hour of searching.

"Not yet, but I think we are getting close. The scanners are going off the charts," Chekov replied taking his safety goggles off.

"Alright. We need to be ready soon. Something about this whole mess just doesn't seem right to me," the young Ensign said getting a welding torch and a pair of goggles.

"Agreed," Chekov replied before turning to her, "We found it. Can you start repairs?"

"I'll do my best," Clarice replied walking over and looking it over, "Oh dear god...sir, this may take longer than half an hour to repair. The damage is extensive."

"Vy dolzhno byt' shutite ..." he muttered in Russian, running his hand through his hair.

* * *

To be continued...


	13. Chapter 13

After what felt like an eternity, Chekov and Clarice ad managed to slow the leak but had yet to stop it completely.

While working, Clarice felt herself becoming light headed, forcing her to step back and take a breather.

"Is everything alright?" Chekov asked pulling his goggles off after walking over to Clarice.

"Yeah, sorry sir. I just haven't been sleeping well lately. I just need a break," she said smiling a little.

"Go take a rest. We can handle this," he said taking the tools from her and setting them aside.

"Alright sir," she replied reluctantly before leaving Engineering.

Once she was inside the lift, a ship wide message rang out alerting everyone that John Harrison was aboard the ship.

Hearing this, Clarice redirected the lift to Security instead of to her quarters.

In her mind, Clarice could already hear Leonard's voice lecturing her, What were you thinking!? That man is a killer!

Brother or not, Clarice had to see John Harrison for herself, no matter what the consequences.

Upon arriving at the Security deck, Clarice paused a moment before heading for the holding cells.

Much to her surprise, the security guards weren't there, but brushed it off and slowly walked towards the center cell.

Her heart began pounding and her breath caught in her throat, but Clarice tried to push herself forward.

"You know...if you wanted to see me, you shouldn't be sneaking around."

Hearing a deep British voice ring out, Clarice knew she was right, though she didn't want to be, "John...I had hoped it wasn't really you..."

In the cell, Clarice saw a tall man, about six foot, with dark clean cut hair that was brushed back, fair ivory skin and prominent cheek bones standing in front of the force field and staring her down.

"Why? Because of that ONE night?" he asked tilting his head with a hint of curiosity in his eyes, "Because you thought we had a connection?"

Seeing his cold eyes once again, Clarice felt her legs grow weak, "P-Perhaps...or maybe I just though I had a better judge of character."

A cold and cruel laugh erupted from the captive man as he stepped towards the field, "Is that so?"

Hearing his laugh chilled Clarice to the bone as she forced herself to remain calm, "It is. I just made the mistake of trusting the wrong person."

"You made a mistake in trusting Starfleet. If you really think you are such a good judge, perhaps you should carefully watch the events about to unfold," he said smirking coldly at her.

"And why should I trust you?" she asked, feeling lightheaded again, stepping back ever so slightly to keep from falling.

Watching her closely, John Harrison couldn't help but smile to himself, "So...that's it...you're with child...MY child..."

"Shut your mouth!" she snapped before bracing herself against the security desk.

"Oh my...it would seem the child is taking its toll on you. I could help you," he replied holding his hand up to the worce field and pressing his hand against it, "For a price..."

Clarice stared at him, then at his hand against the force field before shaking her head, "No! The day I ask for help from someone like you is the day I draw my last breath."

"That day may not be very far off if Kirk doesn't heed my warning!"

Jus before she turned to leave, Clarice let his words sink in before turning around an walking over to the force field, "What do you mean?"

"I have your attention now? I would enjoy your last few hours before those you trust end them," he said in a low voice leaning in close to the force field, "Though perhaps...I could give you one last thing..."

She said nothing but simply stood there staring him down.

"My name is not John Harrison...my name...is Khan," he said before stepping back and returning to the bench in the cell.

Clarice waited a moment before hurrying out of Security, her heart racing and her mind clouded.

Once she got to the lift Clarice went straight to the bridge and walked over to Kirk, "Sir!"

Kirk turned to her and walked over, "What is it McCoy?"

"Sir...why is Khan still alive?"

Surprised she knew his name, Kirk raised an eyebrow, "I don't feel Admiral Marcus' orders were right. We're taking him back to Earth to face trial. How do you know his name?"

"I..." she knew that he wouldn't be happy but Clarice took a breath and looked Kirk in the eye, "I went to look into the eyes of the man who Killed Pike sir. I understand Pike was important to you sir, but he was important to me as well. To everyone. I wanted to see the face of the man that had killed one of Starfleet's best."

Hearing her explanation, Kirk nodded before a familiar voice rang out over the intercoms, "captain. we're on the surface."

"Is that Leonard?" she asked as Kirk went back to his chair.

"Good. Bones, Marcus, I need you guys to open that thing carefully. We don't know what's in there," Kirk said ignoring Clarice's question.

"Dammit Jim I'm a doctor! Not a torpedo technician!" Bones snapped over the intercom before talking to Dr. Marcus, "What do we need to do?"

"To understand how powerful these weapons are we need to open the warhead. To do that, we need to access the fuel compartment. Unfortunately for us, the warheads on these weapons are live," Carol Marcus explained going over it with her tricorder.

"Sweetheart, I once a performed an emergency C-section on a pregnant Gorn. Octuplets. Let me tell you, those little bastards bite. I think I can work some magic on your missile," Bones replied with a smug smirk on his face.

"Don't get cocky Leonard," Clarice muttered under her breath, hoping nothing would go wrong.

"Dr. McCoy, there's a bundle of fiber optic-cables against the inner casing. You'll need to cut the twenty-third wire down. Whatever you do, do not touch anything else. Do you understand?" Carol asked looking Bones in the eye.

Bones reached in and sighed as Carol gave him the rundown, "Right. The thought never crossed my mind."

As he prepared to cut the wire, Carol pushed a few buttons, "Dr. McCoy, wait for my word. I'm re-routing the detonation processor. Are you ready?"

"And raring."

Clarice heard this over the comms, holding her breath as a thick silence fell over the ship.

"Good luck," Dr Marcus muttered waiting.

A few more moments of silence passed before Bones let out a cry of pain, "Dammit!"

Sulu looked over his console before freaking out a bit, "Sir the torpedo just armed itself!"

"Leonard!" Clarice cried out, clenching her fists.

"I can't get my hand out!" Bones snapped biting back the cries of pain.

"Lock on! Get them back on the ship!" Kirk ordered standing up and turning to Spock.

"Transporter cannot differentiate between Dr. McCoy and the torpedo. We cannot beam back one without the other," Spock explained as he tried to get a signal.

"Dr. Marcus, can you disarm it?"

"I'm trying! I'm trying!" Carol snapped pulling a panel off the side and looking at the wires.

"Just get her the hell out of here!" Bones snapped pulling on his arm.

"Dammit, lock onto Dr. Marcus' signal. Be ready to transport her out," Kirk snapped turning to Sulu.

Clarice swore under her breath, for the first time in her life, she felt utterly and completely useless.

"Ten, nine, eight," Bones said watching the countdown on the display.

Sulu turned to Kirk, "Ready to beam Dr. Marcus aboard on your command sir."

After a second, Carol grabbed the wire bundle and tore it out,"SHIT!"

After a moment Leonard's voice rang out, "Jim, you may want to see this."

Hearing his voice, Clarice ran to the shuttle bay, her mind racing.

* * *

To be continued...


	14. Chapter 14

I apologize for the short chapter, the next one will be longer I promise.

* * *

At the shuttle bay, Leonard was helping a couple of crew members unload the mysterious torpedo from the shuttle craft.

Clarice entered the bay and breathed a sigh of relief to see that he was more or less unharmed.

Walking over, the brunette looked at her brother before smacking his arm, "You idiot!"

"OW! What the hell!?" Bones snapped looking down at his sister, "What was that for!?"

"You gave me a heart attack," she snapped before hugging him, "Don't do that to me again you idiot."

Seeing that his sister was genuinely concerned for him, Bones nodded and pat her shoulder, "Yeah, sorry."

After their moment, Spock and Kirk showed up looking concerned and intrigued.

"What'd you find Bones?" Kirk asked as he walked over and looked at the torpedo, "Holy...

"Captain, I believe there is something Khan is not telling us," Spock said looking it over as well.

"Leonard...you thinking what i'm thinking?" Clarice asked staring in shock at the sight before them.

Bones simply nodded and started towards med bay, Clarice following closely.

Inside the torpedo was a man, asleep inside a cryo tube that looked fairly old.

* * *

After taking the stasis tube to the med bay, Bones began looking over the mabn while Clarice began inspecting the cryo mechanics.

"What have we got?" Kirk asked walking into the medical bay to find Bones looking over the man while Clarice and Carol examined the cryo tube.

"It's quite clever, actually. This fuel container's been removed from the torpedo and retro fitted to hide this cryo-tube," Carol explained handing the schematics to Kirk.

"Is he alive?" Kirk asked after he looked over the sleeping man.

"He's alive, but if we try to revive him with out the proper sequencing, it could kill him. This technology is beyond on me," Bones explained as he continued monitoring the mans vital signs.

"How advanced are we talking?" Kirk asked running his hand over the cryo tube.

"Not advanced sir...ancient," Clarice said pulling up some old schematics, "We haven't needed to freeze anyone since we develop warp capability. Which explains the most interesting thing about our friend here. He's three hundred years old."

Kirk paused a moment before leaving the room without a word.

Clarice sighed and hurried after him, "Sir! That Harrison guy! Think he knows something about this?"

"I KNOW he does," Kirk answered as he entered the lift, "And I'm going to find out what. Get to engineering. Help get that leak fixed. I want to get out of here as soon as possible."

With a sigh, Clarice started to make her way back to engineering but changed her mind and started back to med bay, hoping they could get somewhere with the cryo tubes.

* * *

To be continued...


	15. Chapter 15

"Anything new?" Bones asked after a few moments of silence.

Carol simply shook her head, "Nothing. What about you Clarice?"

"Not really. Just what we found earlier," Clarice replied putting her tricorder down and placing a hand on the cryo tube, "Something just doesn't seem right about this."

"You're telling me. There's something about that guy that just rubs me the wrong way," Bones muttered as he began running tests on the blood sample he collected from Khan earlier.

While they continued working, Spock, followed by a security team, walked in, Khan cuffed in the center of the group, "Dr. McCoy. Captain Kirk has requested that Khan remains here for the time being."

The room fell dead silent as Bones, Clarice, and Carol all turned to look at Spock and the group.

Khan stood there, no expression on his face, almost as if he were waiting for something to happen.

"Are you mad? I will not have this lunatic in my med bay!" Bones snapped walking over to Spock, "Spock, this man may snap at a moments notice and take us all out."

"I am truly sorry Dr. McCoy, but the captain was very firm with his request. He will be remaining here until further notice," Spock explained as the security team escorted Khan to a vacant bed where he sat down and remained.

Clarice could only stand and stare at the prisoner, her throat felt as if it were tightening with every passing second.

"McCoy? McCoy!" Carol said shaking her arm, a look of concern on her face.

"Hm? Sorry, lost in thought," Clarice muttered turning away from Khan, "What is it?"

"Are you sure you're alright? You look a bit pale," Carol explained reaching for a tricorder.

"I'm fine. Just...a little stressed out I guess," Clarice replied pushing the tricorder away, "Things are just a little too chaotic right now."

Carol looked at her a moment before nodding, "Yeah...I guess you're right..."

After a few moments, Clarice felt something was wrong.

* * *

In a hurry, the younger woman ran to the bridge in hopes that she could get some answers.

Just as she arrived, Kirk did as well.

"Sulu! ETA on the ship!" Kirk demanded taking his seat, ignoring the confused engineer.

"3 seconds sir!" Sulu replied, a look of concern on his face.

"Shields up."

Sulu nodded and hit a switch, "Aye sir."

"They're hailing us sir," Uhura said turning to Kirk.

"On screen, shipwide channel for evidence," Kirk replied standing up and stepping forward.

After a second, none other than Admiral Marcus' face appeared on the screen, "Captain Kirk."

"Admiral Marcus, I wasn't excepting you. It's a hell of a ship you got there," Kirk said taking a seat again.

Marcus sighed and shifted a bit, "And I wasn't expecting to get word that you'd taken Harrison into custody in violation of your orders."

Clarice could feel the tension in the air, thick enough to have been cut with a knife.

"Well, we uh...we had to improvise when our warp core unexpectedly malfunctioned. But you already knew that, didn't you, sir?" Kirk asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"I don't take your meaning."

"Well, that's why you're here, isn't it? To assist with our repairs? Why else would the head of Starfleet personally come to the edge of the Neutral Zone?" Kirk asked glancing from Marcus to Clarice and back at Marcus.

Clarice nodded and went to a console where she began trying to scan the admirals ship in hopes of finding some weakness.

"Captain, they're scanning our ship," Sulu said hitting a few switches.

"Is there something I can help you find sir?"

"Where is your prisoner Kirk?"

"Per Starfleet regulation, I'm planning on returning Khan to Earth to stand trial," Kirk explained, a small drop of sweat rolling down his brow.

"Well, shit. You talked to him. It's exactly what I was hoping to spare you from. I took a tactical risk and I woke that bastard up, believing that his superior intelligence could help us protect ourself from whatever came at us next. But I made a mistake. And now the blood of everybody he's killed is on my hands. So, I'm asking you, give him to me, so that I can end what I started," Marcus said sternly as he started to lose his calm.

"And what exactly would you like me to do with the rest of his crew, sir? Fire them at the Klingons, end seventy-two lives? Start a war in the process?" Kirk asked leaning forward towards the screen a it.

"He put those people in those torpedoes. And I simply didn't want to burden you with knowing what was inside of them. You saw what this man can do all by himself. Can you imagine what would happen if we woke up the rest of his crew. What else did he tell you? That he's a peace keeper? He's playing you, son. Don't you see that? Khan and his crew were condemned to death as war criminals. And now it is our duty to carry out that sentence before anybody else dies because of him."

Clarice listened intently as she continued scanning, hoping to find some flaw or weakness.

Marcus began to grow impatient with Kirk, "I'm gonna ask you again! One last time, son. Lowers your shields, tell me where he is."

"He's in Engineering, sir. But I'll have him moved to the transporter room right away," Kirk said after a moment.

"I'll take it from here."

"Do not drop those shields, Mr. Sulu."

"Aye, Captain."

"Captain, given your awareness of Khan's true location in the medbay, may I know the details of your plan?" Spock asked turning to face Kirk.

"I told Marcus we were bringing a fugitive back to Earth. That's what we're gonna do," Kirk said walking over to Clarice, "McCoy, please tell me we found something."

"I'm sorry sir. There's nothing. They have the perfect defense," Clarice said, a tone of defeat in her voice, "If we're going to do anything...it'd have to be from the inside."

"I see. Mr. Chekov! Can we go to warp!"

"Sir, if we go to warp, we run the risk of seriously damaging the core!" Chekov explained.

"Can we do it?"

"Technically, yes. But I would not advise it, Captain."

"Noted," Kirk said before turning to Sulu, "Mr. Sulu, set course for Earth."

"Yes, sir."

"Punch it."

* * *

To be continued...


	16. Chapter 16

Clarice stood up from the console and walked over to Kirk, "Captain, I'm not sure how long we can make it. Chekov sent me the readings and our core is fluctuating badly."

"McCoy, I appreciate the concern but if we don't put distance between us we definitely won't make it," Kirk said before something hit the ship, throwing them to the ground.

"Captain! They've caught up and are firing on us!" Uhura called out frantically.

"We've dropped out of warp!" Sulu called out after regaining himself.

"Where are we?"

"We're 237,000 km from Earth!" Clarice said looking to kirk.

"Damage report!"

"Weapons are down. We're defenseless, sir," the navigations officer said pulling up some schematics.

"Sir, we have a bulk head breach."

"Where's the damage?" Kirk asked turning to the android science officer.

"Major hull damage, Captain."

Kirk swore under his breath as the USS Vengeance continued to fire upon them, "Evasive maneuvers! Get us to the Earth, right now!"

"Captain, stop!" Carol called out rushing onto the bridge, "Everybody on this ship is going to die if you don't let me speak to him."

"Uhura, hail them."

"Sir, it's me. It's Carol," the young woman called out stepping forward.

"What are you doing on that ship?" Marcus asked as he come on screen again.

"I heard what you said. That you made a mistake and now you're doing everything you can to fix it. But, Dad..." Carol said, biting back her tears, "I...I don't believe that the man who raised me is capable of destroying a ship full of innocent of people. And...if I'm wrong about that, then you're gonna have to do it with me on board."

"Actually, Carol, I won't."

Carol cried out as her father began teleporting her.

"Can we intercept the transport signal?" Kirk asked in a hurry.

"No, sir."

In an act of desperation, Clarice reached out and tried to grab her before it was too late, only to be transported with her.

"Carol! Clarice!" Kirk cried out before turning to Spock, "Can we get them back?"

"No sir, our scanners are too damaged," Spock explained grimly.

Meanwhile on the Vengeance, Clarice and Carol had been taken prisoner and brought to the bridge.

"You back stabbing bastard!" Clarice snapped trying to break free of the security guard only to be forced to her knees as he twisted her arm behind her.

Ignoring her, Marcus looked to Kirk over the transmission, "Captain Kirk, without authorization and in league with the fugitive John Harrison. Then you went rogue in enemy territory, leaving me no choice but to hunt you down and destroy you."

Marcus then turned to his weapons tech, "Lock phasers."

"Wait, sir. Wait! Wait, wait, wait, wait! Wait!" Kirk called out.

"I'll make this quick. Target all out door torpedoes on the Enterprise bridge," Marcus ordered calmly.

"Sir, my crew was just...was just following my orders. I take...I take full responsibility for my actions, but they were mine, and they were mine alone. If I transmit Khan's location to you now, all that I ask is that you spare them," Kirk said, genuine fear and concern in his voice, "Please, sir. I'll do anything you want. Just let them live."

"That's a hell of an apology. But if it's any conciliation, I was never gonna spare your crew. Fire at will," Marcus said before going off screen.

Clarice swore under her breath and tried to pull away from the security guard before hearing the weapons power down.

"Someone in engineering just manually reset our systems!"

"What do you mean, someone? Who?!" Marcus demanded looking at one of the engineers.

* * *

To be continued...


	17. Chapter 17

"Okay McCoy...if you know something start talking," Marcus snapped walking over and back handing Clarice across the face.

A small cry of pain escaped her lips as his hand connected, a slight red mark forming on her right cheek.

"Talk!" the admiral snapped smacking her again.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Clarice snapped after she recovered, "I don't know who is on the ship. As far as I knw it's just me and Carol."

Marcus looked her in the eye for a second before looking to Carol, "Do you know anything?"

Carol only managed to shake her head as she stepped back half a step.

"I want security down there now! Find out who did this!" Marcus ordered returning to his chair.

Clarice swore under her breath as the security guard pulled her back to her feet and taking his hands off of her, "Come on Captain..."

"You think Kirk can help us?" Carol asked her crew mate quietly.

"We can only hope," the engineer replied glancing at Marcus, her mind turning with ways to buy time.

"What are you thinking? There's now way you could stop him," Carol whispered placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Not stop him," she muttered turning to Carol, "Just delay him..."

After a few minutes, a message came over the intercoms saying that one of the portholes had been opened and two people had made it aboard.

Hearing this, Clarice decided to make her move.

In a hurry, she spun around, slammed her knee into the security guards gut and grabbed his phaser.

Carol grabbed a phaser as well though it was apparent she didn't want to use it.

The rest of the crew hurried to make their move but Clarice was already a step ahead of them.

She stunned three of them before one of the guards came up behind her and knocked her to the ground, causing her to drop her phaser.

"You'd commit treason for Kirk?" Marcus asked half sarcastically walking over and kneeling in front of her, "What has that man ever done to deserve this loyalty?"

Not waiting for an answer, the admiral returned to his chair just as the the doors opened and Kirk, Scotty and Khan burst in.

Kirk and Khan both took down the remaining officers as Carol helped Clarice up.

Scotty didn't waste a second in stunning Khan and taking him down.

"Scotty!" Clarice said smiling and hurrying over to him, embracing him.

The engineer smiled and hugged her back before turning his attention to Khan, "I need to keep him down."

Clarice nodded and walked over to the fugitive's unconscious form, resisting every urge to kick him while he was down.

That wasn't her style though, Clarice would rather he be awake and facing her when she beat the hell out of him.

Kirk rushed to Admiral Marcus, his phaser trained on his chest, "Admiral Marcus, you're under arrest."

" You're not actually gonna do this, are you?" Marcus asked looking Kirk in the eye.

"Admiral, get out of the chair."

"You better stop and think about what you're doing, Kirk. you better think about what you did on Kronos. You made an incursion onto an enemy planet, you killed a Klingon patrol. Even if you got away without a trace, war is coming! And who is gonna lead us? You! if I'm not in charge, our entire way of life is decimated! So you want me off this ship, you better kill me," Marcus snapped, his grip tightening on the arms of his captains chair.

Kirk scoffed as Marcus went on, "I'm not gonna kill you, sir. But I could stun your ass and drag you out of that chair. I'd rather not do that in front of your daughter. You alright?"

Carol nodded as Kirk looked at her, "Yes, Captain."

"Clarice?"

"Been better sir, but still alive," Clarice replied as she walked over to Kirk, grabbing a phaser and training it on Marcus, "Just give the word sir. I'd love to take a shot at this bastard."

Before anything else could be said, Khan jumped up, knocked Scotty back, and went for Kirk.

In a flurry of fighting, Khan managed to throw Kirk aside before heading towards Marcus who had tried to run for the turbo lift.

"Listen! Wait!" Carol cried out stepping between him and her father.

Khan said nothing but tossed her aside and stomping down on her leg causing it to snap.

As soon as he got to Marcus, the madman grabbed him by the skull, "You! You should have let me sleep!"

There was only a second before Marcus fell dead and Carol let out a scream of horror.

"Dammit," Clarice snapped firing at Khan a few times.

The shots connected but only slowed him a moment before he walked over and grabbed her by the throat.

Unable to say anything, Clarice only managed a quiet choking noise as Khan lifted her off the ground, "You simple idiot...You were a tool..."

Just before losing consciousness, Khan threw Clarice hard into the wall before taking the Captains seat.

Clarice gasped for breath as best she could, her should felt as if it had been dislocated and her chest felt heavy.

Scotty hurried over to her and placed a hand on her cheek, "Are you alright?"

Though she couldn't manage to say anything, the young woman nodded before couching hard.

Meanwhile, Khan reestablished contact with the enterprise, Kirk held at gun point as Spock came on screen, " I'm going to make this very simple for you."

Spock stood up from the captains chair, a look of true concern in his eyes, "Captain!"

"Your crew for my crew."

"You betrayed us," Spock replied raising his eyebrow slightly.

"Oh, you are smart, Mr. Spock."

"Spock, don't...GAH!" Kirk said before feeling Khan smack him over the head with the phaser.

With Kirk unconscious, Khan walked over and grabbed Clarice this time, grabbing her injured arm, "Mr. Spock, give me my crew."

Spock watched as Khan held the gun to Leonard's sisters head, "And what will you do when you get them?"

"Continue the work we were doing before we were banished," Khan explained tightening his grip and pulling a cry of pain from his hostage.

"Which as I understand it involves the mass genocide of any being you find to be less than superior."

Khan smirked slightly as he heard this, "Shall I destroy you, Mr. Spock? Or will you give me what I want?"

"We have no transporter capabilities."

"Fortunately, mine are perfectly functional. Drop your shields," Khan said forecfully.

Spock paused a moment, "If I do so, I have no guarantee that you will not destroy the Enterprise."

"Well, lets play this out logically then, Mr. Spock. Firstly, I will kill your Captain to demonstrate my resolve. After that, I will kill the other three crew members of yours I have. Then if your resolve holds, I will have no choice but to kill you and your entire crew. If you destroy our ship, you will also destroy your own people. Your crew requires oxygen to survive, mine does not. I will target your life support systems located behind the aft nacelle. And after every single person aboard your ship suffocates, I will walk over your cold corpses to recover my people. Now, shall we begin?

"Lower shields," Spock said seeing Clarice's pain.

Khan chuckled and began pushing a few buttons on his console, "A wise choice, Mr. Spock."

Not letting go of Clarice, Khan looked at his readout, "I see all seventy-two torpedoes are still in their tubes. If they're not mine, Commander, I will know it."

"Vulcans do not lie. The torpedoes are yours."

"Thank you, Mr. Spock," Khan replied as he kicked Kirk aside.

Spock leaned forward slightly out of concern, "I have fulfilled your terms. Now fulfill mine."

"Well, Kirk, it seems apt to return you to your crew. After all, no ship should go down without her captain."

Kirk moned as he tried to stand up only to see Scotty and Carol being transported to the Enterprise with him.

Clarice watched them before trying to pull away from Khan, "You bastard! Why didn't you send me?"

"You? You're to valuable," Khan replied gingerly placing a hand over her stomach.

Realizing what she meant, the young woman swung her fist at his face hoping to break free.

Khan felt her fist connect but didn't even wince, "So much fire. We'll break that soon enough."

He then forced the young woman into one of the seats and buckled her in.

Meanwhile, back on the Enterprise, Bones hurried to the detention level where the Captain and the others were transported to.

"Where's Clarice?" he asked as he helped Carol up and started her towards Sick Bay.

Kirk and Scotty both glanced around only to realize Khan had kept her.

"Sir, the torpedo's are rigged to blow," Bones explained sounding worried.

"Oh no..." Kirk muttered hurrying to the bridge.

* * *

To be continued...


	18. Chapter 18

Clarice was holding her arm to her body as she watched Khan walk back to the captains console.

"Don't worry," Khan said smiling coldly at her, "You won't be hurt as long as you do as your told."

Before she could respond, an explosion went off, throwing Khan to the ground and slamming Clarice against the belt holding her in place.

"Noooo!" Khan cried out, his crew now lost to him.

The Vengeance began falling towards Earth as the ships systems slowly started breaking down.

"What now?"

Hearing Clarice speak, Khan looked at her, pure anger and hatred burning in his eyes.

"Your plan failed Khan," Clarice said with a smirk as she managed to sit up in the seat, "You have nothing left."

The dark haired man stared at her a moment before going to the console, "Set destination! Starfleet Headquarters!"

The computer beeped before a voice spoke up, " Engines compromised. Cannot guarantee destination. Confirm Order."

Clarice felt her throat tighten as she watched him, but she knew she couldn't stop him.

"Confirmed," he said glaring at Clarice.

He then walked over to Clarice and held up a vial he pulled from his pocket, "You have to survive..."

Seeing the vial, Clarice realized he was going to inject her with his own blood, "A moment ago...you said I was a tool..."

"I don't necessarily need you. I just need you to survive long enough to ensure my child lives," Khan snapped jabbing the needle into her arm and injecting the blood into her arm.

Clarice cried out and threw her head back, his blood rushed through her veins and seemed to set to work repairing her injuries.

Before anything else could be said though, the ship crashed in San Diego, only a mile away from the Golden Gate bridge.

Khan was thrown back against the console and Clarice was once again thrown against her restraints, this time harder though, enough to make her black out momentarily.

When she came to, Khan was standing at the edge of the ship where the screen once was, staring down at the people running below.

Clarice managed to catch her breath as she undid the harness and tried to make her way over to him, there was no way he was getting away after what he did to her Captain and Scotty.

Khan smiled as he saw her brace herself on the console and start making her way over, "Did you really think I'd leave you?"

Before she could ask what he meant, Khan grabbed her and carried her bridal style to the opening before jumping down and sliding down to the concrete below.

Clarice tried to break free once they hit ground, but his grip was too strong, "Let me go you bastard!"

After a few minutes, he stopped walking behind a pillar where he stood her up and slammed her against the wall, "Listen to me you wretch. The only reason you are still alive...is the child. I wanted to kill you the moment you walked into Security, but knowing that you have my child inside of you has kept me from snapping your neck like a twig."

The engineer cried out as her back connected with the concrete behind her, once again becoming winded.

Just as Khan was about to continue his talk, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Spock running towards him.

Khan hesitated a second before dropping Clarice against the wall and running through the crowd, grabbing a trench coat as he did.

Clarice sat there, her vision blurry as she tried to make sense of what was going on.

"Clarice?"

A familiar voice caught her attention as her mind began to clear up some, "Leonard?"

Lo-and-behold, Bones had transported down after Spock to ensure his sister was still alive, "Yeah, it's me. You alright?"

"A bit battered..." she managed trying to stand up, "But still alive."

Leonard placed a firm hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down, "Don't move. You could have fractures or breaks..."

Clarice wanted to fight back and get back to the Enterprise, but this time, she simply sat bck against the wall, "Alright. How's Kirk?"

Bones hesitated, a true pain reflected in his eyes, "The captain...he's dead..."

Hearing this, Clarice felt herself grow cold, "No...no he can't be..."

The look on Bones' face said it all, which made Clarice almost shut down until a stabbing pain in her stomach brought her back

"Clarice? What's wrong?" Bones asked running a tricorder over her.

"I-I'm not su-AHH!" Another wave of pain wracked her body, causing her body to lock up.

"You're in labor...did Khan do anything to you!?" Bones asked quickly as he helped her up and started for the hospital across the street.

"N-No...nothing," Clarice replied before letting out another cry.

"Nothing at all?" Bones asked as they walked in and he set her down on a gurney that had been left by the desk.

"No! Wait...he...he injected me...with his blood," Clarice replied before feeling a contraction hit.

Hearing this, Bones swore under his breath and went to the desk, "I need someone to help me out here. It's my sister, she's gone into labor..."

The nurse behind the desk nodded and paged a doctor in hopes that at least one wasn't too busy with other people.

Bones hurried back to Clarice and gripped her hand, "Hang in there Clarice."

"I always do Leo," Clarice said forcing a chuckle.

As they waited, Bones ran over her once more with his tricorder before seeing something that threw him off, "What the hell..."

"What?" Clarice asked before crying out once more.

"According to this...the kids fully developed..." Bones said scanning again to make sure.

"That's not possi-GACK!"

Another scan only revealed that yes, the child was already completely developed.

"Is this her?" a doctor asked rounding the corner, her glasses hanging around her neck.

"Yes Doctor," the nurse replied hurrying over and helping her move Clarice.

Leonard was about to follow when he paused, he had to get back to the Enterprise to revive Kirk once Spock caught Khan.

* * *

To be continued...


	19. Chapter 19

After what felt like an eternity, Clarice heard the cries of her child as the doctor began to dry it off.

"It's a girl," the nurse said smiling at the new mother.

"A girl," Clarice gasped with a smile as the doctor wrapped the child in a blanket and handed her to her mother, "She's beautiful."

The baby had her mothers brunette hair, and her smile, though she had Khan's eyes and nose.

Clarice didn't care though, Khan may have been the reason for her daughter being there, but that was all he was, a reason.

Scotty had left the Enterprise with Bones and Spock when they took him to the hospital to revive him when he heard Clarice was there.

Once Bones and Spock had things under control, Scotty found one of the nurses and asked them to take him to Clarice's room.

"Clarice!?"

He rushed in to find his lover there, holding her child with a tired smile on her face, "Scotty...I'm glad you're ok..."

Scotty walked over and looked at the baby, a slightly goofy smile coming to his face, "She's adorable."

"I still don't have a name for her," Clarice said looking to Scotty, "Any ideas?"

After thinking a moment, Scotty gently took the girls hand in his, "How about Serenity?"

"That's a wonderful name...Serenity McCoy..." Clarice commented looking at Scotty.

A few days later, Clarice and Serenity were released from the hospital with clean bills of health while Scotty was waiting outside for them with a cab.

On the way home though, Clarice told the taxi to make a detour.

"Everything alright?" Scotty asked looking concerned.

"Yeah," Clarice said gently shifting Serenity in her arms, "There's just something I have to do first..."

The cab came to a stop outside of Starfleet Headquarters and Clarice got out, swiftly walking in and headed for the detention level.

In a cell, sitting in the center of the room, cuffed to his chair, was none other than Khan.

He heard footsteps and smirked to himself as he recognized the foot fall, "Seems you can't stay away can you?"

Clarice stood there, her daughter held gently against her chest, "I just came to show you MY daughter..."

Khan raised an eyebrow as the woman took a few steps closer to the cell, "Our daughter?"

"Not our daughter...my daughter, John," Clarice said reverting back to his alias he used when they met, "She'll grow up never knowing a thing about you. She won't know your name, who you were, or what happened three months ago. You will never have existed in her life,and I aim to keep it that way."

Hearing this, Khan felt an anger building up inside of him but did his best to keep calm, "How long will that work for you? Medical records don't lie..."

Clarice chuckled as she gently turned so Khan could see the child's face, "Look Serenity...that man...will never threaten anyone again..."

Khan looked at Serenity, and for the first time ever, he felt remorse and sorrow.

Her face was so innocent and pure, her eyes the same steel blue as his own.

Serenity let out a coo and turned her head away from Khan.

"Just remember this Khan," Clarice said walking up to the force field and looking him in the eye, "If you had done things differently...you'd be standing here next to us. Now, you're going to sleep for an eternity while we live our lives."

The convicted man couldn't find the words to say as a few tear drops rolled down his cheeks while he watched Clarice leave with his daughter.

Back in the cab, Scotty saw Clarice come out and sighed in relief.

Once back in the cab, Scotty looked at Clarice, "Everything alright?"

Serenity let out a small laugh as Clarice smiled at her before looking at Scotty, "It is now."

Not wanting to pry, Scotty smiled and kissed her on the lips gently, "Alright..."

The cab stopped outside of Clarice's apartment and Scotty helped her out, "Be careful..."

"Scotty, I'm fine," Clarice said with a smile as she stepped out, Serenity firmly held against her chest.

Much to her surprise, Kirk (looking worse for wear), Spock, Bones, Sulu, Uhura, Carol, Chekov and Keenser were all standing outside talking and waiting, "What's going on?"

Scotty sighed and turned to Clarice once everyone fell quiet, "Clarice...I love you so much. You and Serenity. I wanted to ask you something..."

As he went down on his knee, Clarice gasped when he pulled out an engagement ring, Serenity laughing loudly.

"Clarice McCoy...will you marry me?"

Kirk smiled and shifted slightly as he watched this, while Bones looked to be a mixture of happy and concerned.

"Scotty...I...Yes...A hundred times yes!" she cried out, tears of joy running down her cheeks.

Scotty smiled big, put the ring on her finger, stood up and kissed her swiftly, "Thank you...thank you..."

The crew began cheering, even Spock managed a smile and some light applause before looking at Uhura and gently taking her hand.

Kirk walked over and smiled, "Congrats guys. And welcome to the crew Serenity."

As he looked at Serenity, she whimpered a moment before she started crying.

"Seems she's already pretty damn smart," Bones joked as Kirk looked shocked and a tad hurt before walking away.

* * *

"I now pronounce you...Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery. You may kiss the bride," Kirk said as he presided over the ceremony.

Clarice smiled as Scotty embraced her and dipped her into a romantic kiss.

Bones was in the front row holding Serenity as she laughed and cooed at her mother.

It was obvious he was fighting the tears back and trying to remain manly.

As they finished the kiss, Clarice tossed the bouquet into the crowd where Uhura caught it and turned to Spock, a slight smile on her face.

Spock tried to look happy but also looked a bit uncertain.

* * *

"There will always be those who mean to do us harm. To stop them, we risk awakening the same evil within ourselves. Our first instinct is to seek revenge when those we love are taken from us. But that's not who we are. We are here today to rechristen the USS Enterprise, and to honor those who lost their lives, nearly one year ago. When Christopher Pike first gave me his ship he had me recite the Captain's oath. Words I didn't appreciate at the time. Now I see them as a call for us to remember who we once were, and who we must be again. And those words...Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of Starship Enterprise. Her five year mission, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilization. To boldly go where no one has gone before," Kirk said addressing the entirety of Starfleet exactly one year after the incident with Khan and Marcus.

Clarice stood beside Scotty, Serenity in her arms, now a year old and much bigger.

After he finished the captains oath, everyone began applauding and cheering, even Serenity though she didn't understand what he said.

As people started leaving, Scotty and Clarice started following everyone to the exit when Kirk stopped them, "So what's the plan?"

"Not sure, if I can find a sitter," Clarice said setting Serenity down on her own two feet, "I say we get drinks and celebrate, Captain."

"Sounds great. Not what I meant though," Kirk replied with a chuckle, "I meant where are you and Scotty headed?"

"The Enterprise, you dolt!" Scotty snapped playfully smacking his arm, "You'll not be rid of us that easy!"

"He's right captain. Your stuck with us for good," Clarice said picking Serenity back up and smiling at her, "All three of us."

"I see...well," Kirk said awkwardly, "Wouldn't have it any other way."

Serenity began mumbling and giggling before pointing at Kirk, "Cap...ain...capain!"

This caught everyone off guard especially Kirk, "Excuse me?"

"Capain! Capain!" Serenity repeated clapping and pointing again.

"Look at that Kirk," Clarice said laughing at his awkward smile, "You're now her first word."

"She doesn't even know how to say mom or dad yet...consider yourself lucky sir," Scotty said with a laugh.

The next day, back on the Enterprise, Clarice and Scotty were on the bridge while Keenser was in their quarters keeping Serenity company.

Chekov stood up as the turbo lift doors opened, "Captain on the bridge."

Everyone saluted Kirk as he walked back to his chair where Sulu was sitting, "It's hard to get out of it once you got a taste. Isn't that right, Mr. Sulu?"

Sulu chuckled and stood up, "Captain does have a nice ring to it. The chair's all yours, sir."

Kirk laughed a bit and sat down before looking at Scotty, "Mr. Scott, how's our core?"

Scotty smiled and nodded, "Purring like a kitten, Captain. She's ready for a long journey."

"Granted you take it easy on the poor girl," Clarice added crossing her arms.

I can't make any promises," Kirk said walking over to Bones and patting him on the shoulder, "Come on, Bones. It's gonna be fun."

"Five years in space. God help me," the doctor muttered looking a bit pale.

"Doctor Marcus, uh...I'm glad you could be a part of the family," Kirk said smiling at the blond doctor.

Carol chuckled and nodded, "It's nice to have a family, sir."

"Spock," Kirk commented taking his spot in the seat again.

Spock looked at him and smiled, "Captain."

"Where should we go?" Kirk asked staring out the view port at the vast space ahead of them.

"As a mission of this duration has never been attempted, I defer to your good judgment, Captain."

Scotty smiled and held Clarice's hand as Kirk thought.

"Well Mr. Sulu...let's go. Second star to the right and straight on till morning," Kirk said, quoting his favorite shildhood book.

"Yes sir," Sulu said making some adjustments and taking them into the vast darkness of space.

* * *

To be continued...


End file.
